Friends Worth Fighting For
by DestielDeducingInTheTARDIS
Summary: The Doctor needs to work together with his old friends to save the people he cares for most. River/Eleven Amy/Rory Rose/TenToo This is my first fanfic guys - go easy! *I do not own Doctor Who (but believe me I'm trying) - all rights belong to Doctor Who and the BBC*
1. Chapter 1: Unexpected Reunion

The small, gold ring that encircled her finger told her she was engaged.

Her heart, every beat fraught with denial, told her she wasn't.

Why did she say yes? She didn't really love him. Sure, he was nice. Sweet, even. But she couldn't marry him. It wasn't right.

The ring was small, intricate. Beautiful.

It burned her finger. The salty sea air elicited one plump tear from the corner of Rose's eye. This was the last place she'd seen him – the real him. Her Doctor. And now she needed him. They all needed their Doctor. The world was in trouble, and he was the only one they could count on. So where was he? Jack said he could find him, but that was weeks ago. "Oh, where are you?" Rose sighed to the ocean, which could only lap at her feet in response.

IN ANOTHER UNIVERSE…

Not even a bowtie and fez could fix this problem. All of his friends were gone. Amy and Rory… he had tried to hard to find them, to get back to them, but even with River's help he couldn't do it without risking the entire planet. And now River had left.

The Doctor sat at some sort of an intergalactic bar, looking at hundreds of species walking by and wondering how he could have let himself become so attached to two people, how he could have let himself build a family.

The bartender looked at him worriedly as she refilled his water. He avoided her gaze, chewing on his mozzarella stick and wishing more than anything for a plate of fish fingers and custard. A tableful of other aliens giggled behind him and the Doctor lowered his head into his hands.

"Captain Jack Harkness, and _who_ are _you_?"

"Oi, stop it," the Doctor said without thinking.

"Ha, I knew it was you! Different face, but there's only one person I know who would dare to go out wearing that," Jack gestured to the tweed coat and bowtie.

"Bow. Ties. Are. Cool." the Doctor replied, standing up to look Jack in the eyes, "But that's not why you're here."

"No Doc, believe it or not, I have more important things to worry about than your fashion sense… or lack thereof," his eyes swept over the Doctor's unkempt appearance.

"Why are you here, Jack?"

"We need you. River's missing. Yeah – I know River." The Doctor stared him down. "Whoa! Not like that, no. Give me some credit. We've worked together – that's all. I know you're married," Jack noticed his eyes shift, "Well are you waiting for an invitation? Come on, the world needs you."

The Doctor reluctantly moped behind Jack's confident stride. To his surprise, Jack walked right to the TARDIS, flipping out his old key with a smirk, "Never know when you might need this!"

Before he could swing the doors open, Jack's phone rang. "Hey, calm down I got him… Yeah we're on our way… Don't worry, Rose, it's good." The Doctor froze in his tracks; gripping the TARDIS handle so tight his knuckles turned white and the machine gave a small groan in protest. "Shit… Oh nothing… He heard me say your name… Yeah, I know you told me not to say it. It was a mistake!... See you in a bit."

The phone snapped shut a little too loudly, snapping the Doctor back into reality. Jack was already inside the TARDIS. "Come on, Doc! You gotta fly this thing for me!" he called from the inside, cutting himself off with comments on the redecoration. Not hearing footsteps, he turned around and his voice softened, "Hey, come inside. I'll explain everything, but I need you to fly her."

Once they were in flight, the Doctor pulled a lever Jack had never seen before. The TARDIS screeched to a halt, sending Jack scrambling for a grip.

"Talk," the Doctor sat in a chair on the other side of the console, "We're in stasis and I'm not moving her until you tell me what the hell is going on." His voice never varied, but somehow it was scarier.

"You know, this new regeneration of yours is a lot more passive-aggressive." He saw that the Doctor was not amused, "Anyways… River is missing. Not even Stormcage knows where she is, and they always know. Even when she breaks out, they just know they can't hold her. But now… nothing. And there's trouble in the parallel universe. Natural disasters, more alien disruptions than Torchwood would like to see, things like that. Most important, cracks. Cracks in the universe, Rose says. She figured if anyone knew anything about them, it would be you. So I've spent nearly two weeks trying to track you down."

"Jack, what do you want me to do? I've only ever met one person with a direct connection to those cracks and… I lost her. She was my best friend."

"We know; we've done our research. And we have a theory. The weeping angels got her, right? Well, what if they can move you in time _and_ across dimensions? They'd have to be incredibly powerful, but they could feed on a hell of a lot more energy. What if Amy is in the other universe, with Rose? We can save her, which would probably help fix that universe, and she could help us find River."

For the first time during Jack's speech, the Doctor looked genuinely against the idea. "Jack. Amy Pond is under no circumstances to know about River's disappearance, much less help us. _If_ we can even save Amy, we send her back to the right universe, preferably a time when I can see her without blowing up New York, but she will not know. Okay? River's real name is Melody, Jack. And Amy Pond is not going to help us find Melody Pond because I will not risk losing her again!"

"What?!"

"Amy isn't just my best friend, she's my mother-in law. River's mum."

"How does that even work?"

"Wibbly wobbly, timey wimey… you know the deal," the Doctor jumped up, "alright, Jack. Let's go save my family!"

He put out of his mind that Rose didn't fall into that category, that she wasn't his wife. He had moved on, there was nothing wrong with that. Still, Jack could see the absent look that plagued his friend's face as he went through the motions of flying the TARDIS. Suddenly, he reached over and grabbed the vortex manipulator off Jack's wrist, "I need to hook her up to this! If we're breaking dimensional barriers she needs some coordinate to lock onto!"

The TARDIS jerked as the vortex manipulator was linked into the system. "Hold on Jack, this is gonna get rough!"


	2. Chapter 2: What's Next?

Small explosions suddenly rocked the console, sending Jack and the Doctor flying. "I'm pretty sure this is normal!" the Doctor yelled as he struggled to make his way back to the controls.

"Pretty sure?!"

"We're breaking through to a parallel universe – not popping down to Cardiff!"

"How can you even go to another universe? I thought that was impossible!"

"Can we focus on my exploding TARDIS for the moment?!"

With a final jerk, the TARDIS stabilized and moaned loudly. "I think we made it," the Doctor pushed his hair back and flashed Jack a dopey, youthful smile. Jack rolled his eyes and stood up, heading toward the doors. As Jack threw him a look, he reluctantly released the brake and followed Jack to the doors as the TARDIS materialized.

Stepping out of the TARDIS, the sun over Bad Wolf Bay hit him directly and he was forced to shield his eyes. As he regained his focus, he saw her. She stood only 100 metres away, facing the ocean that lapped at her feet. "Where are you, Jack?" he heard her say to the sea. Jack pushed the Doctor forward, making him trip over a log with the sudden movement. Jack audibly sighed and Rose turned on her heels to look at the bumbling bowtied man. Her hands instantly went to cover her mouth as tears sprung to her eyes. The Doctor pushed his hair back, fighting his own tears, "Hello, Rose."

His gaze fixated on the small gold band encircling her left right finger, and met her eyes again, distraught. "I don't love him, Doctor. John still isn't you."

"Rose -"

"No, we aren't going to do this again."

"Rose Tyler. I missed you!"

He closed the distance between them and picked her up off the ground, holding her tight. She was crying now, he was still fighting back tears. Jackie and Mickey ran up behind Jack, Jackie immediately gasping as she took in Rose and the Doctor. Jack smiled back at them, leaning against the TARDIS, "I told you I'd find him."

"So that's him? That's the Doctor?"

"Sure is, Mickey Mouse!"

The Doctor set Rose down, and she beamed up at him. "I missed you too."

The Doctor smiled back at her, held out his hand, and wiggled his fingers. She grasped it tightly, never dropping his gaze. "Well everybody, I think we've got some people to save!"

He winked at Rose, then leaned down to her ear and whispered, "Run."

She pulled him along, and they sprinted across the Bay toward the city shining in the distance. When everybody had gotten to the small house at the edge of the beach, they assembled in the living room.

The Doctor started them off, "Okay, what I've heard so far: we might be able to save Amy and Rory, still not sure how you know about them, we need to save River, anything I've missed?"

"Well, yeah Doctor," Rose chimed in, "the sudden surge of alien activity a while back. But there hasn't been anything – anything at all – in months. It's completely quiet. We don't know why everything would suddenly abandon Earth – I mean, parallel Earth."

"They wouldn't."

"What do you mean?"

"They wouldn't. They wouldn't abandon Earth unless something was happening," the Doctor paused "Or, something is here. Something is here right now and nobody else wants to go near it. Oh this is extremely very not good."

His eyes darted around as he put the pieces together in his head. "Oh. Oh! Oh… oh no," he looked around at the concerned faces staring up at him, "Yes. Well, something is here. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, but it is not good. Not good at all. Jack, your theory about the weeping angels taking people across time and dimensions. What if you're right? What if the angels are here, now, and they are more powerful than we thought. Powerful enough to move people to parallel universes and scare all other alien species away from a planet. I know River; she'd catch onto that. She would've come here. She has a vortex manipulator too, Jack. Well, yours. Well, yours from the future, another point in its time stream."

"I'm not sure I follow, Doctor," Rose piped up from the chair in the corner.

"The weeping angels, they're a race, a species. They date back to the Time Lords, but I don't know how. They're quantum locked, only move when they aren't being observed, and they move people in time – and apparently dimensions – to feed on their potential energy."

"Okay then," Rose smiled, "Let's get 'em."

"It's not gonna be that simple, Rose. These would be more powerful than any angel – any alien – I've ever seen. There's no telling what we're up against."

"Right, well we do have to get your friends back."

"My friends, yes," he looked at Jack, who shrugged, and the Doctor realized Rose didn't know. About his family, his wife, any of it. Jack was protecting her. He nodded his thanks back, then looked to Rose once again. "You're right. We do need to save them."

"You know," she looked at him hopefully, "we might have something that can help."

Just an hour later, the Doctor, Jack, and Rose found themselves outside of a nondescript building on the outskirts of the city. The doors slid open and they walked through. The Doctor stopped inside and looked around gleefully, "Ah! Parallel world, parallel UNIT!"

Rose gestured down a hallway, flashing a shiny badge to the guard. "Well, come on. We've been working on something."

The Doctor followed her down the small, brightly lit hallway into a white paneled room. "Rose, this is brilliant! Dangerous… but brilliant! A paradox machine? You're bloody brilliant, Rose Tyler!"

He reached for her cheeks and kissed her forehead. "The angels made a mistake. They thought I couldn't get to a parallel universe, but they were wrong. I can get here, well… obviously. And since we're in a parallel world, it's not the same New York I lost them in! It's less dangerous to go back, and now we have a paradox machine to stabilize the dangers that are still there! Rose I could kiss you!"

He leaned over, floppy hair falling in front of his childlike eyes and kissed her forehead again, Jack still laughing in the background. Rose was smiling; this was the Doctor she was used to, maybe a different face, but her Doctor all the same. "Ok, so what do we do now? We got this machine all set up, but none of us really know how to go about using it."

"First, we need the TARDIS. I left her on the bay! I'll be back, Rose Tyler! Allons-y!"

He threw her a wink with his old trademark saying and ran out the door, flailing over his own limbs. Rose smiled to herself and sighed. He was so much more childlike, but he was happy. He had been so miserable the last few times she had seen him, maybe a chance to rescue everyone he loved was bringing him back to her. Her Doctor, but different. Not the same man born out of his love for her, but the man born out of loss. She wandered around the room, examining the familiar and unfamiliar machine, trying to figure how it could possibly work. She heard the painfully familiar materialization noise and ran to the other side of the flashing device as the Doctor enthusiastically popped out of the TARDIS. "Ah! River said I leave the brakes on, but that is a brilliant noise!"

Rose giggled, "So how does this work?"

The Doctor showed her which cables to hook into the TARDIS console and tried to explain how it would work. "Rose, see if we plug that large cable in…the other large cable. Here, over here. Great, now I need you to operate the machine from here so I can go in the TARDIS."

"But I don't know how to use it, I wasn't technically on the team that developed it."

"Oh you can do it Rose. I believe in you," he smiled at her and disappeared into the TARDIS. "Just make sure the numbers on the display stay steady!" he yelled from inside.

There was a creak and the TARDIS dematerialized. Jack sprinted over to Rose, who watched the display when suddenly the middle column spiked. "Doctor! What do I do?!"


	3. Chapter 3: Back to the Future

The TARDIS rematerialized suddenly, crashing into place, still attached to the machine as sparks burst out in all directions. When the Doctor exited, his hair was disheveled and his face was smeared with grease and sweat. His bowtie hung untied around his shoulders and the tweed jacket was now in need of repairs. He coughed and dust poofed up around him. Looking over at his companion, he raised an incredulous eyebrow, "Machine could use a few tweaks, I think!" he yelled, despite standing mere feet away from her.

"Gee, you think?"

She pushed his hair back from his eyes. "I need Jack, can you spare him? I'll never be able to get the Ponds with only one person manning the TARDIS. I'll see if I can get this old thing up and running!"

"Yeah, I'll go grab him. Think he went to get water!" Rose called as she hurried out. She slowed down at the door and turned to face him, "Doctor, please don't blow anything up."

He smiled and she turned and ran out the door. The Doctor ran around, fiddling with the machine. Finally, he found the problem. Pulling out his sonic screwdriver, he crawled under a panel on the north side of the machine and opened the door to the dimension circuit. He poked at the wires and they sparked in protest. "Oi!"

"Doctor, I believe she said _no_ explosions," Jack's voice permeated the cramped control room. "Relax, no explosions," the sonic screwdriver hummed under the machine and Rose and Jack jumped back as something popped. The Doctor suddenly rolled out from the panel and jumped up to face them. "See? No explodey-wodey," he pointed at the two of them with the sonic, "you all should trust me more."

Jack pushed the sonic out of his face, "No offense Doc, but this new regeneration really doesn't inspire much confidence."

The Doctor shook the screwdriver in Jack's face, trying to think of a clever remark, but turned away frustrated, walking toward the TARDIS. "Alright, Rose I need you at the machine again. Jack with me," he turned at the TARDIS door, "Geronimo!"

PARALLEL UNIVERSE – THREE MONTHS AGO, 1938

Rory Williams sat on a New York park bench with his head in his hands. He was crying, and not even trying to hide it. Why hadn't he just gotten into the TARDIS? He lost his best friend, his wife, and his daughter with a blink. His head hurt terribly, and he remembered what the Doctor had told him about time travel without a capsule. There was a large empty space on the corner opposite his bench, and as Rory looked up he realized with a start that was where Winter Quay would have been. The irony hit him like a ton of bricks. Great, now his head hurt from thinking about paradoxes.

He had no idea what year it was or where he needed to go from here. He had literally lost everything. Pulling out his wallet, he found the picture of Amy and Melody they had discovered in Florida. Amy looked so happy holding their baby girl. Come to think of it, he wasn't sure when the picture was taken. It looked too happy to be right after she was born; they barely had her before she was taken. He pushed that from his mind and stroked his wife's hair in the worn photograph. A tear fell and hit Melody's face, and Rory couldn't take it anymore. He held the picture to his forehead and cried for his family.

"_Rory!_"

A sudden piercing yell hit from around the corner, "RORY! Please be here! You have to be here!"

Rory jumped up and ran around the corner, stopping suddenly on the sidewalk. A young woman with bright red hair like a fire sat in a field hugging her knees and sobbing silently, her shoulders shaking as her small body was unable to contain her grief. She clutched her head, wisps of ginger hair falling in front of her face and sticking to her cheeks where tears had left sticky trails. Rory's heart skipped a beat and his breath hitched in his throat. He sprinted forward down the block until he stood just ten metres from the woman. "Amy?" he breathed, "Oh Amy, what did you do?"

Amy looked up in disbelief, her anguish morphing to confusion and finally into absolute ecstasy. She jumped up and closed the distance between them, leaping to wrap her legs around his waist and clinging to him as tight as she could as he stroked her hair. Tears streamed down both of their faces as Amy buried her head in Rory's shoulder. They stayed like this for what seemed like an eternity, clinging to each other without saying a word, only muffled cries and deep breaths of relief. "Oh Amy," Rory whispered in her ear, "what happened? What did you do?"

Amy took a deep breath, "Together or not at all, stupid."

She pulled away and looked up at him with a smile, rising up onto her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him. "You left the Doctor and River behind?" Rory asked when she pulled away.

"She'll take care of him. He'll be okay. He has to be okay, he's the Doctor."

"I'm so glad to see you."

"So when are we, Centurion?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I haven't really tried to figure any of this out yet."

"Maybe… maybe we should just sit here for a while."

Amy sat back down in the field and Rory sat next to her, putting his arm around her shoulder and kissing her head. A light rain started, and Amy began to cry against her husband's chest, missing her best friend.

Back in the Doctor's time, he and Jack were busy flipping switches and pressing buttons in the TARDIS while Rose yelled out numbers and coordinates from the paradox machine. "Ah hah! I think we got it, Rose! Ready Jack? Geronimo!"

The TARDIS jerked suddenly and the Doctor grinned at Jack as it dematerialized, the familiar noise an early sign of success. The TARDIS was unsteady, but there weren't any explosions, just a lot of jerking and spinning. The Doctor felt his TARDIS lock onto the coordinates, "Almost got her!"

The TARDIS stopped suddenly and materialized. "Okay. Alright, if there are angels here, I'm not letting them get my TARDIS again." He ran out the door as Jack called after him, "Again? What the hell kind of things do you do when I'm not here?" Jack finally ran out behind. The Doctor pointed the sonic at the TARDIS, and it dematerialized. "One second out of sync!" he added in response to Jack's look of protest, and smiled, obviously proud of himself.

"Jack, can you stay here? These angels are more powerful, they might sense her here, she needs a guard."

"I'm on it! What if they come?"

"Whatever you do, Jack, do not blink. Keep your eyes on them and don't blink. This isn't something immortality can protect you from."

The Doctor and the Captain nodded at each other and the Doctor ran off, sonic in hand.

Amy and Rory were back in the park. It had been three months since they landed, and they'd had time to adjust. They had nice little flat in New York, Rory was a doctor at the local hospital. His first weeks had been rough, he wasn't used to losing so many patients, but the medicine wasn't half as advanced as he needed. Amy stayed at home, and she'd made a nice little place for them when she wasn't writing for the neighborhood paper. The picture of her and baby Melody was framed above the fireplace, their twenty-first century clothes folded and boxed on a shelf in their closet. They wore them some evenings, now less than when they first arrived.

They went to the park everyday, still hadn't gotten used to life without a TV or computer. They always sat in the same spot, the same spot they sat in when they first arrived. Today, they showed up earlier than usual, sitting next to each other silently, Rory's head lying on top of Amy's hair. They kept their eyes shut, listening to the wind and pretending they were home, even wearing their normal clothes. This is where they were when the Doctor found them.

As soon as he had turned the corner, the same corner Rory turned to find Amy, he began to cry. His Ponds, he had finally found them. They looked peaceful, but the Doctor could tell there was an air of sadness surrounding them. He smiled, knowing exactly how to play this, and started down the walk. His heart tripled their time in his chest as he got closer to them. "Hello, Mr. Pond," he said casually as he walked past.

"Doctor," Rory nodded, greeting him back while keeping his arms around his wife, their eyes still closed.

"Doctor?!" Amy and Rory jumped up together staring at the back of a tweed coat, which had suddenly stopped moving. He spun around, already close to tears, "Did you miss me?"

Amy practically squealed with joy and ran forward, throwing her arms around her best friend and nearly knocking him over. This time Rory was right behind her, and the three of them clutched each other, aware of how surreal and long-awaited this moment was. Something moved and they let go of each other, the Doctor instantly jumping between them and the weeping angel, desperate to keep his friends from harm, and pointed the sonic at it. "Maybe we should go, Doctor," Amy suggested.

The Doctor agreed, "TARDIS?"

"Yeah. TARDIS sounds good, works for me," Rory replied, taking Amy's hand and squeezing it tight. The Doctor swallowed and began backing up. "Well," he took a deep breath, "Come along Ponds!"


	4. Chapter 4: Catching Up

Amy and Rory ran ahead holding hands while the Doctor walked backward, keeping his eyes on the menacing stone. Thankfully, groups of people came out of a nearby shop and were caught up in the statue's oddity, so the Doctor turned and ran, catching up to his friends. Pulling them along, they ran around the corner to where Jack waited and froze. Jack was standing in front of the materialized TARDIS staring down three ferocious weeping angels. "I need you Doctor! More powerful than we thought! They brought the TARDIS back! Help?!"

"Amy, Rory, don't blink."

"Yeah, like we were gonna do that again," Rory interrupted. The Doctor spun around to face Rory, "What? I'm just saying…"

"Okay, Jack, we're watching them now. I need you to open the door an go inside, but leave the door opened."

Amy and Rory kept their eyes on the statues, and the Doctor turned to face them. "It took me a long time to find you and I'm really glad to have you back, so I need you to be very, very careful. Amelia, I am not going to lose you again. You need to trust me," he said in response to Amy's hesitant look, "Rory's watching them, look at me."

Amy's eyes met his, "My Amelia Pond. I need you to do this for me, alright? You can do this, Amy. I know you can. Remember the Byzantium?" A tear rolled down Amy's pale, shaking cheeks. "Oh, Pond. Please."

He ran forward and kissed her forehead as she gripped his wrists, "Don't be afraid. I won't let them take you from me again."

"Uh, Doctor… I hate to interrupt, but can we focus on the angels right now?" The Doctor turned to Rory, "Oh I missed you too, Mr. Pond!" He kissed Rory's head too as Rory cringed and Amy offered a hesitant laugh. "Alright. Amy, Rory. I'm going first. Just follow my lead, and please don't leave this time. I really wouldn't be able to get you back."

He moved forward, taking a deep breath and stopped behind the first angel. Amy and Rory watched the angels, hoping the Doctor could overcome his chronic and perpetual clumsiness for the next thirty seconds. The Doctor took another deep breath and stepped carefully past the Ponds. He took one step and as he went to take the second, something grabbed his coat. "AMY?!" he yelled, fighting the urge to squeeze his eyes shut.

"Um…sorry Doctor. I think I blinked."

"Rory!" the Doctor sounded completely exasperated, but smiled a small, lopsided grin when he heard Rory moan as Amy's fist connected with his shoulder. The Doctor carefully maneuvered out of his jacket, then turned around to snatch it from the angel. Straightening his bow tie, he looked at Amy and Rory and flashed back to the graveyard. His hearts sank and he hoped they were strong enough to do this. The Ponds still weren't aware of what they were really up against. He looked at Rory. "Come on, Centurion. I've got the angels now. Come on through."

Rory nervously reached to squeeze Amy's hand, and he stepped forward. "Amy, listen to me. I know Rory can do this, but if he can't I'm not going to have you being a hero again, okay? I won't lose you twice."

"Just get Rory through."

The Doctor put his hand out until it was past the angel nearest the TARDIS. "Rory, when you get past the second angel, I want you to take my hand. I'll get you through the rest." Rory carefully avoided the statues, and soon his hand grasped the Doctor's forearm. The Doctor gripped Rory's arm, and with a nod, quickly pulled him through until they both hit the side of the TARDIS. "Rory, go into the TARDIS."

Rory obeyed and went in to meet Jack. The Doctor looked at Amy, "He didn't see you crying. Come on Amelia, I know you can do this. Come along Pond, please."

He heard Amy gasp as he said that, and they flashed back to the last time he had used those words, now filled with pain. The sting was hitting both of them now, and he knew Amy was terrified. "Just one step at a time."

Amy was shaking, but she began moving. The Doctor kept his eyes on the statues, wishing he could look at his friend. He heard her slowly getting closer, and breathed a sigh of relief when he could see her bright hair out of the corner of his eye. Amy took one more step and fell against the Doctor, wrapping her shaking arms around his neck as he spun her around into the TARDIS. As soon as they were in, Jack pressed the button the Doctor said would make her dematerialize, and they were safe. In stasis, the Doctor clung to Amy, still hanging on around his neck as she sobbed openly against his jacket. "I'm so sorry Doctor."

The Doctor squeezed her tight before letting her go slightly to pull her husband in as well. The three of them hugged as Jack watched happily from the center console. Finally, the Doctor let Amy and Rory go and they went to the chairs on the sides of the room as the Doctor flew them home with Jack's help.

Rose had called Mickey, and together they stood at the buzzing paradox machine, keeping close eyes on the flashing numbers in front of them. "Is it supposed to be shaking?"

"Mickey if I know, we wouldn't be having this problem!"

The machine sparked and startled them both as the materialization noise started. The TARDIS reappeared and Rose sighed happily, stepping toward the doors. They flew open, smoke billowing out. Jack was the first one out, smiling anxiously. The Doctor followed, eagerly listening to the Ponds talk about their lives in the twentieth century and filling them in on his trips with River in the first month after they were taken. Jack put his arm around Rose, sensing her jealousy. "Ah, Ponds this is Rose. Rose, Ponds."

"Amy."

"Rory. You know we do have names, Doctor."

The Doctor flashed Rory a beaming smile and picked Rose up in a hug. "Thank you Rose Tyler, you saved my friends."

"Wait," Amy called from behind him, "Rose Tyler? But you said she's in a parallel world. Are we -"

"In a parallel world? Yes, you are. Amy, Rory, these statues are more powerful than we knew. They moved you in time and dimensions."

"Wonderful!" Rory threw his arms up and spun around.

"Melody."

"What?" the Doctor questioned Amy. "Melody, she was with us too. River was there when everything happened. Is she safe, Doctor?"

The Doctor looked at Amelia, tears welling in his eyes. "Doctor, is my daughter safe?"


	5. Chapter 5: Old and New

"Wait," Rose interjected, "River Song is your daughter? Is that why we saved them, Doctor?"

"River's real name is Melody Pond," Amy explained before facing the Doctor, "What does she mean 'is that why you saved us'? What's going on?"

"I will get her back to you, Amelia. Listen to me, you know I would never leave her, that I will do everything in my power to save her."

"Where is she?"

"We don't know. Judging from the current situations, I'm going to say angels."

"Well, can we save her? Can we get her back?"

"Don't know, working on it. I have people… working on it. Let's go back to Rose's house, figure out what's going on."

The Doctor locked the TARDIS so he could leave it protected from the angels at UNIT and they followed Jack and Rose out the door. "Jack?" Rose asked, "What does the Doctor mean about River? What's going on?"

"Rose, even if I knew, it wouldn't be my place to tell you," he was lying, but Rose wasn't ready to know her Doctor was married. Back at Rose's, everyone gathered in the living room to see if they could work out what was going on. Rose sat on the couch with Mickey and Jack, while Jackie came in and stood behind them. Amy and the Doctor shared a chair with Rory on the arm and the trio laughed around a plate of fish fingers and custard. The other four stared at them; Rose was the first to speak, "So Doctor, what _is_ going on?"

The Doctor looked from his custard. "Weeping angels. Awful, terrifying species. We saved my best friends and now we're gonna go beat the rest of the angels and save my w-"

"Your what?"

"My friend. Their daughter. That's who we're going to save." He nodded and smiled at Rose, who looked away. Something wasn't right with him, she could always tell. She didn't know what it was, but he wasn't telling her everything. Jack put his hand over hers, nodding to boost her confidence. Everyone had to be on their A games now. The Doctor looked around, avoiding Amy's questioning eyes. "Mickey! Good to see you mate, how are you?"

"I'm good, Doctor. Came back here with Jack when we got the news about the aliens."

"So how long have you lot been able to cross universes?" the Doctor asked, surveying the faces of his old companions.

"Yeah, how do you do that?" Amy added, "Somebody kept telling me it was impossible." She elbowed the Doctor in the ribs and he winced, still smiling.

"Well it's supposed to be," Jack replied, "But we -"

"Something happened," Rose cut in, "we don't know what, but something happened and then… we were able to. All of a sudden… I don't know. It was strange."

"Strange and nobody thought to call me? I'm a master of strange!"

"Doctor, we didn't know where or when you were. Some of us were in different universes. It was complicated." Rose met the Doctor's eyes. A sudden wash of their history and something that felt like pain overwhelmed him and he dropped her gaze. She noticed him shift uncomfortably, and she frowned, twisting the small golden ring he had yet to mention again. What had changed between them? "Rose? Did I see the TARDIS?!"

An out of breath man with converse and hair that defied gravity sprinted into the room, surprise overtaking his face as he took in the crowd in his living room.

"Oh. Hello." Turning to the Doctor, "Judging from the dress sense, I'm gonna say you're… me?"

"Eh… ish," the real Doctor shrugged and examined the man he had left on the beach kissing Rose. He looked happier, but was undoubtedly the same man. "John!" Rose jumped up, "I was worried."

The Doctor suspiciously examined their interactions, watching John stride across the room to grab her left hand. The gold ring reflected the light from the ceiling fan, and his earlier realization sunk in and struck the Doctor speechless. Even after seeing her ring, it had never truly occurred to him that Rose could have moved on, too. She saw him attempt to wipe the mix of emotions from his face, and quickly dropped her hand from John's, sitting on the sofa and motioning for him to sit as well. "So you found me…him. Okay. But I heard this was about River. We saw River die."

It was a statement not a question, and John looked the Doctor right in the eyes, waiting for a reaction. He could have been mistaken, but he thought he saw anguish cross the Doctor's face for a second too long to be innocent. His gaze softened and he nodded slightly, both an unspoken sign of camaraderie and an apology for being so blunt about River. "Yes, well, it's complicated," the Doctor abandoned John's confused glance, "It's complicated, timelines. You know, all wibbly wobbly."

Shock and recognition lit up on John's face. "Opposite directions? I'm so, so sorry, Doctor."

"I've been to both ends already, just enjoying the middle now, I suppose. Before it fades."

Amy grabbed his hand, "River is my daughter." Her husband looked over at her, slightly offended, "She's mine too, Amy."

"Yeah I know, stupid. I was getting there."

Everyone laughed as John's face indicated they had completely lost him, and the group spent nearly the rest of the evening catching John up on everyone's storylines. The Doctor hadn't even realized how complicated it had gotten until he heard everything at once.

Later that night, the Doctor lay on the floor in the guest room of Rose's house, listening to Amy and Rory's soft snores coming from the bed. Everything had happened so fast, no wonder they were exhausted. It was all so… complicated. He stood up, walking across the small room to the dresser against the opposite wall. Amy had laid the picture of her and baby River on the smooth oak. The Doctor picked up the worn photograph, running his fingers delicately along the soft edges, admiring how happy the pair looked and how oblivious they were of everything to come. He didn't even realize Rory had gotten up until he felt a strong hand on his shoulder. "We'll find her," Rory whispered and he saw the Doctor's eyes moisten as he turned around.

Rory squeezed his shoulder and took a deep breath, "Remember Doctor, she is Amy's daughter. I'm sure she'll be fine until we can get to her."

"I know," the Doctor quietly cleared his throat, "How is Amy doing, given the situation?"

"Better, she knows Melody can take care of herself." Rory gave the Doctor a final pat on the shoulder, and turned to walk back to bed. Before he climbed under the sheets, he turned around, "Thank you Doctor. For finding us. I know it was difficult to get back there and I know you didn't have to, but thanks. It was hurting Amy so much to leave everything behind."

The Doctor spent the rest of the night watching his beloved Ponds sleep, nestled together and smiling back in their own time. With him. Everything the way it should be. Hours later, the Doctor woke with a start. Gentle beams of light danced across the floor, occasionally landing on him for a second before twirling away. He waited for the room to come into focus, and heard a slight, stifled giggle from the other side of the room. "Good morning," Rose smiled and an involuntary smile leapt to the Doctor's face.

Rose giggled again at that childish face, floppy hair sticking out in all directions, so different from the man who grabbed her hand in the shop. Different from the man looked like his world was being torn apart the last time he saw her. But it was obviously her Doctor, for the smile that crept across his face was identical to the one that had greeted her so many times after one of them had to go and do something stupid to save the day. Rose jumped off the bed, "Hurry up, we've got some running to do!" She winked at him and walked out the door, the Doctor still sitting as her heard her light footsteps on the stairs.


	6. Chapter 6: Guessing Games

He jumped up with ease, running a hand through his uncooperative hair that had once again fallen in front of his eyes. Grabbing his sonic from next to Amy's picture, he hurried downstairs, anxious to find River. "Nice of you to join us," Jack piped up from the corner as he entered the room.

The Doctor turned and gave the Captain the most sarcastic salute he could muster so early in the morning. Jack laughed and sipped his coffee, "Alright, maybe we should get down to business?"

Questions began flying across the room, and all the Doctor could do was sit and watch this group of people so determined to help him.

"Do we know where or when River is?"

"How many angels are we up against, exactly?"

"So what is a weeping angel?"  
The last question snapped the Doctor back into reality. He thought everyone here knew what they were dealing with, but evidently nobody had bothered to fill in Jackie. He didn't even realize she was there until he looked up to see his concerned face staring back at him, "Jackie Tyler, good 'ol Jackie! How are you?"

"I'll be better once everything is back to normal, thank you."

The Doctor's smile faded, she really hasn't changed. He saw Rose lean over and heard her whisper, "I'll explain it later, mum."

After lunch, the Doctor stood idly, frustrated with the lack of information. He watched his friends try to talk through the problems, but he didn't listen to what they were saying. Suddenly, he felt a tug on his hand. Turning to the side, he saw Rose grinning up at him and he knew what she was going to say as her fingers wrapped around his, "Run."

He didn't even have time to smile back before they were off, running down the beach clutching each other's hands. They collapsed a distance away from the house, falling onto a warm hill of sand littered with tiny green plants just beginning to sprout. "I missed this, Doctor."

"Do you remember when we went to New New York and we had to run across that huge field just to get to the city?"

"Because somebody isn't reliable at landing the TARDIS. Did you even pass whatever test you had to take to fly that thing?"

The Doctor just smiled at her, "It's been a while, Rose."

"Too long, Doctor. So this new regeneration, did you just decide you wanted to look more like a twelve-year-old?"

"Oi!" the Doctor leaned forward, "River makes fun of the sonic, Amy makes fun of the bowtie, and you with the face!"

"You know now that you mention it, what's with the bowtie?"

"They're cool. Bow ties are cool."

He straightened his bowtie absentmindedly as if to reassure himself. Rose just smiled. The Doctor smiled too, and reached over to poke her left hand; just beneath the ring she had nearly forgotten. "So you stayed with him. Me point two. And you're getting married!"

His heart dropped as he said it, but he wanted to be happy for her. When he looked up, however, Rose had lost her smile and a blank look covered her usually blissful face. "Still not you," she gave him a slight nod, looking down to avoid his quizzical gaze.

"I know." Rose looked up, that was the last thing she expected him to say. "You're right. He isn't me, not exactly. But Rose, he can give you what I can't: a normal life."

"And who says I want a normal life?"

"You deserve one."

"Doctor, this isn't about what I deserve."

"You're human and I'm not. You're centuries younger than me and we look the same age. Do you really not see the problem? John isn't human, not completely, but he can grow old with you and live a life with you."

Rose knew that everything he was saying was true, but she couldn't bring herself to admit it. "I just miss it. The travelling. It's so hard to go back after seeing all that."

"I know."

They were silent for a while, lying down next to each other as the sun blazed overhead. The Doctor pointed up to a spot in the sky, "We went there."

"You could not possibly know that."

"Time Lord."

"You're just guessing."

"I don't guess."

"That's all you do!"

They both laughed and fell silent again, listening to the tide roll in. "We did go there," he pointed to another spot.

"No we didn't."

"How would you know?"

"How would you?"

"Just a guess."

Rose rolled her eyes, "You're hopeless."

"Am not."

"Yes you are. Time Lord that can't even properly fly his own TARDIS?"

"I can fly her! Maybe not as well as River…"

"The screwdriver, _who_ has a sonic screwdriver?"

"You're one to talk."

"Oi!" Rose smacked his arm and they burst into laughter. A large wave crashed, covering the pair in freezing, foamy water, breaking their laughs into breathless gasps. They jumped up and walked back to the house, hands linked.

Rory walked up behind Amy at the window, grabbing her hand as they watched the Doctor and Rose approach. "I've seen things about her in the TARDIS. When we explored," she glanced back at Rory, "I think he was in love with her. I think he was in love with her and I don't think he ever told her."

"She would've known like River knows. He's never said it to her and they got married," Rory paused, "Amy, have you ever heard him say 'I love you'? To anyone? Because, come to think of it, I don't think I have."

Amy's heart dropped and she shook her head, sad for her best friend. Rory squeezed her hand as they heard the back door open and the house was suddenly filled with the Doctor and Rose's laughter. "Where is everyone?" the Doctor asked as they entered the kitchen.

"They went out to see what they can figure out about getting River back. They didn't think we should go… given the circumstances." Amy struggled to maintain her composure, but a single tear dropped down her flushed cheek and she quickly wiped it away. The Doctor quickly strode to Amy's side and Rory backed away. She needed her Doctor for the moment. "Oh Amy," he kissed the top of her head as he pulled her in for a hug, "it's going to be okay. I won't let anything happen to her."

"But this is the first time we aren't certain we'll see her again."

He cupped her face in his hands, "Listen to me, Amelia. I need you to listen. There are not many people in this universe that I care for as much as I care for you two and your daughter. She will be fine, Amy. Cross my hearts."

Amy smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. He buried his head in her shoulder and whispered "_gotcha_" hoping the memory would cheer Amy up. Rose and Rory looked on. They shared a glance, and Rory smiled at the girl he barely knew. The Doctor released Amy and kissed her head again before returning her to Rory. "I'm going to go fiddle around in the TARDIS for a bit. I'll be at UNIT if you need me."

He turned to leave and Rory could have sworn he saw the Doctor tear up. He wrapped his arms around his wife, not sure if he was trying to comfort Amy or himself.


	7. Chapter 7: Families

Everyone was worried about the Doctor. It had been a week and they still didn't have any solid leads. Amy and Rory were getting worried, but they knew River could handle herself. The Doctor, on the other hand, was absolutely beside himself. Rose hated it. She had never seen what he was like after losing someone; she just wanted him to be okay again. John and Jackie constantly reassured Rose that he would be fine; after all, he did have Amy and Rory back. Rose still couldn't lay a finger on why he felt so strongly. Usually he was all business, doing whatever needed to be done to get his friends safe. But now… something was different. He was constantly pacing around, rubbing his face and running his fingers through that ever-impossible hair.

She saw how Amy was always trying to comfort him, how Rory was always distracting him. The two of them were constantly by his side, doing whatever he needed. Rose was happy he had them, but she wanted to be there for him too. She did like Amy a lot. Amy was about the same age as her, and very clever. The Doctor would say she's brilliant. Rose wanted to get River back, not just for the Doctor, but also for Amy. They'd gotten to be good mates and she wanted Amy's girl back.

River was quite pretty. Rose had been more that surprised at her age, but Amy explained that with the timelines all skewed she was close to the same age as her daughter. This didn't change their family dynamic, though. Late at night, Rose saw Rory trying to stay composed with his arm around his wife, asleep on this shoulder with dried tears in the corners of her eyes. They looked so young, like they were looking for a helpless baby instead of the strong, confident woman Amy had so lovingly described.

Every night, when Rory started getting tired, the Doctor would pick Amy up and carry her up the stairs, Rory trailing behind half-asleep. And every night, Rose would curl up on the sofa to sleep, hoping the Doctor would carry her too. But it was always John, if anyone, some mornings she would wake up in the same position on the couch. Often, Amy, Rory, and the Doctor would stand in the kitchen together and whisper loudly back and forth. Rose could rarely hear what they were saying. Sometimes she would catch a bit of fighting.

"You promised you would find her."

"Amy, they are doing everything they can."

"I want her back as much as you, Amy."

She would feel eyes on her back and always turned to find Jack, arms folded, watching her with a frown from across the room. When a week had passed, she found herself turning and running to Jack, letting him comfort her while his arms stroked her back to calm her. "He's a different man now, Rose. It doesn't mean he doesn't feel the same way he used to. Sooner or later he loses everyone he travels with. All of his friends. Do you think he could live with himself if he didn't bury his old feelings?"

Rose started to cry lightly, glimpsing the pain the Doctor must be in. Looking up at jack, something was off. "You know something I don't."

It wasn't a question, and it was hardly a stab in the dark, but Jack's reaction unwillingly confirmed her suspicions. He hesitated for a moment before sighing, "Rose, it's not my business to tell you."

Knowing she wouldn't get anything from Jack, Rose went back to the sofa where she could observe the trio in the kitchen. Today, the Doctor seemed more stressed than she had ever seen him. He was sitting on the counter, head in his hands. Rory was sitting anxious and silent at the small table, and Amy was pacing angrily. This couldn't be good. "Amy…"

"No. You promised me. You promised me at Demon's Run and you promised me now. We couldn't find her then and we can't find her now."

"I will find her."

"You've been saying that for a week!"

"This is why I didn't want you involved, Pond!"

"I have every right to be involved – she's my daughter!"

"You don't think I have as strong a connection to her?"

"She's my baby and the angels have her… oh god."

Amy started crying and the entire dynamic changed. The Doctor jumped down and grabbed Amy, hugging her tight. Rory put his head in his hands, obviously wiping back tears. "I promised you I would find her, and I will, but you have to believe me. Oh my Pond, have faith, just this once."

"The angels… I'm so scared we're going to lose her forever."

"Amy, look at me. I got you and Rory back. Whatever happens, wherever River ends up, I will do everything in my power to get her back to you."

Amy gave a slight smile, "And here I told her to take care of you, when you've ended up taking care of her."

"I'll always take care of her."

"You better," Rory chimed in, "you need to get her back for us."

"Rory, stop acting like my father-in-law."

"I _am_ your father-in-law!"

The Doctor gave a surrendering nod and froze when he saw Rose in the door, hands over her mouth, eyes tearing up. She turned and ran, and the Doctor immediately looked past to meet Jack's eyes, silently sending him after her. Jack turned to follow her, his trademark coat spinning as he hurried out the door. The kitchen was dead silent. "Doctor, I'm so sorry. I didn't see her there."

"Should you go talk to her?"

"No, Jack's got it for now, I'd only make it worse." His hand pushed his hair back, and it stuck up in all directions. He had no leads on River and the entire situation had just become infinitely more complicated. The Doctor turned suddenly and headed out the back door, slamming it shut as the Ponds called after him. He needed to gather himself, he would never find River if he wasn't on top of his game.

"You should've told me."

"How did you -"

"Know it was you?" Rose turned around, "Would you believe that even after all this time I can tell when you're here?"

The Doctor smiled and sat next to her on the rock, "Rose Tyler, Defender of Earth, the one who saved me from myself? Of course I believe it."

Rose laughed and bowed her head.

"What?"

"You're rubbish!"

"Ah… Rose Tyler, Defender of Earth, Guesser Extraordinaire."

"Oh now you're just making it seem glamorous," Rose gestured toward the house, "I saw you walk out."

"I'm sorry, Rose. I should have told you about River."

Rose twisted her ring, "Would you look it us… all grown up."

"Ha! Having a family doesn't make me 'grown up'."

"Yeah… since when do you do families? You nearly had a fit when my mum ended up on board."

"Rose it was your mum. Can you blame me? And to be fair, I didn't know they were family when I met them and I definitely didn't know they would be my family."

They looked over the ocean until the Doctor finally broke the silence, "I did consider you my family, Rose. I'm so sorry that everything is different. When I regenerate… I tend to block out the worst memories. I have to if I want to stay sane. And well… losing you… it was one of the most painful experiences I've ever had. At Canary Wharf and then when I had to leave you here…" he trailed off and took a deep breath.

Rose wrapped her arms around one of his and leaned her head on his shoulder. They stayed like that for several hours until the rain started. With the sudden downpour, the Doctor pulled off his tweed jacket and threw it over Rose, pulling her up and running with her back to the house. John and Jack were back and talking in hushed tones when they walked in. Amy and Rory were across the living room, silently watching Amy's favorite program. The Doctor linked hands with Rose and they walked in, surprising only John who looked slightly put off at the minor display of affection. They moved to the back of the room, the Doctor sat on a sofa with Rose's head in his lap and they watched TV with the Ponds. He felt terrible for hurting her. Rose fell asleep and that night he carried her up to her room before he even went to get Amy.


	8. Chapter 8: Trouble in Paradise

When she awoke the next morning, John was already gone. She sat up and was more than surprised to see the Doctor sitting across the room, watching her sleep with a perplexed expression. She looked from him to the empty spot in the bed. "He went out early with Jack. I met River in my last regeneration," he explained, "He has my memories, so he remembers watching a stranger who knew everything about him sacrifice herself for him. He doesn't know what comes after, so he only feels the responsibility from the library."

Rose was silent. She hadn't even considered that chance, that John could possibly know River. "What did happen next?"

"When you find someone whose life is as complicated and utterly difficult as yours, well, it's quite hard not to be affected. That's why you got to me."

"I'm hardly the same as River."

"No, but you were different because you were simple. I had just lost my planet, my people, everything. And then I find Rose Tyler. You had such a youthful optimism. You loved me and cared for me even when I gave up. You were exactly different and exactly what I needed. I was intrigued."

There were tears in Rose's eyes as she listened to the strange yet familiar man finally talk about their relationship. She knew, without him ever saying, that he loved her on some level, but this was his way of saying it. The only way he could ever say it. If he ever spoke the words 'I love you' it would make him vulnerable, it wouldn't be something he could simply forget once he regenerated.

"Doctor!" Jack's voice resonated through every crack of the small, quiet building.

"Rose!" the Doctor cringed at the familiar voice yelling just as loud.

The two made brief eye contact before jumping up and sprinting out of the bedroom. As they made their way downstairs, they heard Amy and Rory frantically questioning the obviously breathless pair of men. Their trench coats were still rippling from running when the Doctor and Rose reached the landing.

"What the hell happened?" Rose demanded as she felt the Doctor freeze next to her.

Jack looked up, totally out of breath, with blood smeared on his face and more dripping from an open cut on his forehead. His gaze locked onto the Doctor's. "No…" the bowtied man sighed.

He backed up slowly, feet slipping as he struggled to find purchase. Rose looked at John, who nodded, and back to the Doctor, obviously confused. Jack gave her a look filled with both sympathy and pain as they waited for the Doctor to find his words. "They're… here?"

"Yeah. I fell trying to get away." Jack rubbed his arm across the deep cut and as his hand pulled away, the cut was gone and only a small dabble of dried blood remained. Rose gave him a lopsided smile and even a small laugh when she saw the Pond's shocked expressions. Finally, the news hit and nobody spoke until Rory broke the silence. "Wait, so the angels… they're here? What does that mean? Is River here?"

His wife' head jerked up suddenly at the possibility, and the whole room looked toward the Doctor for guidance. "I don't know! This has never happened before and I just… don't know."

He gripped the bannister and his hair fell in front of his face as he bowed his head, "If they're here, they'll be coming for us…"

He didn't need to look up to know that Amy and Rory had turned pale as sheets and that everybody else was looking around in pure terror. All eyes turned to him as a reckless thought escaped into the air, "If they're here then River is here."

When he opened his eyes, his gaze immediately fixed with Amy's brilliant brown eyes. He realized he was starting to cry when he saw a salty drop slowly crawl down Amy's pale face. This was going to be so difficult. He had expected some obstacles when he had begun to put the pieces together, but nothing this powerful or threatening. Jack was the first one to offer a bit of optimism, "If River is here, won't it make getting her back a little easier?"

Surprised, the Doctor abruptly turned to face Jack and carefully stepped down the creaky stairs to stare the Captain in the eyes. His face was puzzled as he stared Jack down. "What?"

"Nothing. I'm just not used to you being the one making the most sense, that's all."

"Is that a compliment?" the Doctor could have sworn he saw a spark of flirtation in Jack's eyes and his head cocked to the side. Jack sighed, obviously realizing that in this situation, jokes would get him nowhere.

Just then, the lights went out and the house was pitch black and eerily quiet except for some muffled screams and terrified gasps as the group huddled together at the base of the stairs. The Doctor was the only one who remained where he was, hands still clutching the bannister, not blinking as his eyes rapidly adjusted to the thick veil of black. He could make out the shaking silhouettes of his friends, gathering back to back and trying to move toward the wall. The Doctor himself was frozen in place until Amy got his attention, "Doctor! Help us!"

Nothing was there yet, but the prospect of what was to come was enough to reduce the previous victim of the weeping angels to tears. The Doctor snapped to attention, his best friend was scared and he could help. He rushed down the remaining stairs, barely making it down without tripping over himself, and used the sonic as a torch to make his way over to the group. His face lit up despite the fear when he could fully see his friends, though they were shrouded in unwelcome shadows. They all responded with hesitant smiles, but looking into his eyes they could see his fear as well. The Doctor didn't know what was coming, and that was new. New, and potentially deadly. "I think they're coming," was all the Doctor could muster.

"No shit, Sherlock!" Jack yelled as a loud groan came from the opposite end of the house.

The Doctor didn't have time to be annoyed at Jack's sarcastic response, so he joined their huddle and worked to inch them all toward the back door, happy they'd chosen a wall near an exit. They made it to the door, and the Doctor spun around quickly and flung the door open, leaping into a defensive position with the sonic screwdriver extended toward the intruder. Amy snickered at his careless reaction, "They can't get us as long as we're watching them, Doctor."

A sickening screech against the back wall got everyone's focus. With the surprise at the door, nobody had been watching behind them. Everyone but the Doctor turned back around and there was more that one scream. "Doctor! You're gonna want to see this!" John called, and if John thought it was urgent then they could definitely be in trouble.

When the Doctor saw John shift to face the angel at the door, he moved so he could see across the room. Any and all words were instantly caught in his throat. His face drained of color. Three simple words were carved into the wallpaper, a scribbled response to Amy's offhand remark, "Or can we?"

"What the hell does that mean?!"

"I don't know, Rory, but I don't like it! Run!" the Doctor ushered his companions past him and John got them by the angel blocking their escape. Once he was sure they were safe, he ducked after them and slammed the door, locking it with the sonic as he ran. Thankfully, there were no angels to be seen around the house, and the group took off down the beach. Nobody looked back. They ran for over a mile before the Doctor could be confident that they weren't being followed. "How…" John panted, "How can you be sure…"

"You saw what they said, they made it clear that if they wanted us, they would have us. No… they have something else planned."

While the Doctor stood pondering the logic behind his own thought, John found a bridge over a large, empty ditch and decided it would be a good place to set up. The Doctor had no objections, so they spread out all the research and theories they had been able to scramble together, and began piecing bits together. The sun had begun to peek over the horizon when John and the Doctor realized they were the only ones still awake. John walked over to Rose and draped his coat over her shivering form before turning back to the Doctor, "I'm not an idiot. She loves you."

"She's stubborn. We're practically the same man, she'll come around."

"I remember Canary Wharf, the battle, everything. I remember losing her too, and she doesn't see us the same."

"It's not you, John," the Doctor tried to clarify, "She misses the travelling."

"She misses the Doctor."

"You _are_ the Doctor."

"No. No, I'm John Smith, the hopeless half-human version of the Doctor with the same brain and the same feelings, but none of the perks!"

The Doctor sat silently next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder and digging up some new papers. Rose lay awake as they began a new, hushed conversation, and a tear escaped her eye, rolling down to land on her jacket.

***Alright, dears. This is all I have typed for now, but I promise I'll have updates soon! Thanks for reading, please leave feedback!*******


	9. Chapter 9: Regrouping

***Hey guys, sorry it's been a while! Wow the response has been incredible. I love all of you, especially you guys that followed, favorited, and reviewed. It means a lot!*******

**Disclaimer: Much to my disappointment, I still do not own Doctor Who. (I'm working on it)**

Rose was tired of overhearing things that should be told to her face. She fell back asleep and woke again when the sun shone down from directly overhead. She was the last one up, and from Jack's amused gaze she gathered that her hair was in quite a state. Self-consciously she raised her hand, groaning when it met nothing but poofed-out knots in various states of disarray covering the left side of her head. "I'm glad you're all finding some entertainment," she only half joked when the Doctor did a double take and had to make an effort to stifle his laugh. She made a rushed effort to untangle the worst of it, wincing in pain, and hurried to join the group. "So what have we found out?"

"Well, the angels have River."

"Thanks Rory, you are a wonderful addition to the group," Rose flashed him a wink, happy he could cracks jokes in such a stressful time, "I mean, anything new? Anything, I don't know… helpful, maybe?"

"Nothing yet, but it's good to see your smiling face," Jack appeared from overhead holding more papers covered in the Doctor's unmistakable scrawled handwriting, "None in the house anymore, I got some more of our stuff."

Amy piped up hopefully, "Does this mean we can go back?"

"Nope, that's why I grabbed more of our things! They want us to go back. We can work theories from here," Jack jumped over the edge of the bridge and landed softly on his feet near Rose, "We need to know what's coming for us."

Rose turned and narrowed her eyes at him, "If they aren't in the house and they haven't come to get us, don't you think we're safe enough? Besides, we'd be better protected in my house than here."

"She does have a point, Jack."

Rose smiled, relishing her victory, as Jack reluctantly regathered the papers he had just spread out. With an incredibly overdramatic sigh and coat-flaring spin, Jack jumped out of the trench and waited for the rest of the group before starting in the direction of the beach house.

Later, the group sat clustered in Rose's living room and they all looked to the Doctor for any scrap of advice. Nobody understood what was coming, and the Doctor didn't know what to tell them. He didn't know either. Rory finally broke the tense silence, "So… can we get to River?"

The Doctor stopped pacing abruptly and spun on his heels to face his curious friend with a pained expression, "You're not going with me."

It wasn't a question, but Rory stood and responded anyway, "Yes, I am. She's my daughter and she needs help."

"I'm going too," Amy rose and intertwined her fingers with Rory's. Her eyes met the Doctor's and she saw how truly afraid he was. Her stare softened and he turned away silently. Amy looked at the ground, "Can Rory and I talk to you… alone?"

The Doctor didn't meet her gaze, but gave a slight nod and walked out of the room, stepping up the stairs to the bedrooms. He slowly lowered himself to the edge of the guest bed and allowed a tear to escape his left eye. Amy and Rory came up a few minutes later, and seconds after she saw the state of her friend Amy's arms were wrapped around his neck and her head was nestled in his shoulder. She closed her eyes as she whispered, "You are never going to lose us again."

She felt his tears dripping onto her hair, felt the pressure of his head falling onto hers for comfort, felt her husband slide down next to her and slide his arm around her back. He was the first to properly speak, "I'm not going to promise that you'll never lose us again, but no matter what could happen, we need to do this. She's our daughter, Doctor, you honestly can't expect us to wait here while you go save her on your own."

"I'll take Jack…John…Rose. Hell, I'd even take Jackie before I let you two back near the angels."

"We have experience. We have motivation. I won't let them have her."

"Amy, you said that about Rory last time and we couldn't stop them! What makes you think it would work now?!"

"Because River is my baby and it has to. It has to work."

Amy's own tears began spilling down her cheeks as she clutched her boys. The Doctor let out an audible sigh, knowing he could never talk Amy out of trying to save her family. Even if it could mean sacrificing herself. He also knew that if Amy was going, there was no way he could stop Rory. They were a package deal, and the Doctor both loved and hated their determination to do anything for each other and their family. It made them ruthless, but it also made them reckless.

Back in the living room, Rose sat in silence next to Jack. The Pond's pain was palpable and she knew Jack could feel it too. The Doctor's visible pain was utterly devastating. She remembered her own anguish when she lost the Doctor and her heart broke knowing that his current state was so much worse. He had been around for so long and he had never let himself become so attached that he could get married. Rose knew that if he lost River, he would never open up again. He would never let himself feel that kind of vulnerability a second time. With a quick glance at Jack, she knew he was thinking the same thing.

Long after everyone else had gone to bed, Jack and Rose remained on the sofa, waiting to her what was happening. When the clock struck midnight, Rose swung her legs onto the couch and laid her head on Jack's lap, falling asleep with his arm draped over her back. By one o'clock, Jack found his own eyelids struggling to stay open and drew the conclusion that the trio wasn't coming back in the foreseeable future. Not wanting to wake Rose, he carefully lifted her off the sofa and rested her head against his shoulder. He carried her up the stairs and into her bedroom. John didn't stir as he pulled back the blanket, and he watched John roll over to snuggle behind her before he flipped off the lights and gently closed the door.

Jack was exhausted, but he made his way down the hall to one of the guest bedrooms. Upon opening the door with a creak, he saw the Doctor and the Ponds passed out asleep on top of the comforter. He had to stifle a laugh at the sight. Amy was curled up in a small ball with her head resting on Rory's chest, gently rising and falling in time with his breath. His arms wrapped around her, holding her close, but the Doctor's arm was also thrown over her side. They were all diagonal on the bed, so Jack grabbed pillows and carefully guided them under Rory's and the Doctor's heads as Amy already had one in the form of her sleeping husband. He slid their shoes off and covered them with a massive heavy blanket before slipping out the door to make up the pullout sofa bed.


	10. Chapter 10: Revelations

**A/N: Wow guys! Thanks for the amazing reviews! I'll have updates soon. For now, here's some fluff with a bit of a cliffhanger ;)**

Rory woke with a start and he wasn't sure what he was more surprised at: the fact that it was still pitch black outside or that when he turned his head to the left he was greeted with the Doctor's sleeping face. Granted, when he turned to the right he could see his wife with her tangled red hair curled against his chest, but being tired and disoriented, it wasn't much of a comfort. With a groan, Rory pulled himself out of bed, being careful not to wake either of his bedmates and shuddering at the thought. Rubbing his eyes, he glanced at the clock telling him it was only 4:30 in the morning. Rory frowned. He knew he'd never be able to fall asleep in his original position after waking up with the Doctor's hair inches from his eyes, so he slouched into the bathroom and started running a shower. He climbed in a minute too early and was startled by the blast of cold water that promptly hit his face and sent shivers down his spine. Barely managing to stifle a yelp, he adjusted the water and tried to wake up. When he had gotten out and towel-dried his hair, Rory wrapped the soft towel around his waist and snuck back into the bedroom. He gave a slight smile when he saw the Doctor's arm thrown casually across Amy and the sight was so adorable he couldn't even feel the pang of jealousy in his stomach.

Clambering down the stairs, Rory anxiously poured himself a much-needed pot of coffee and stumbled onto the porch, surprised to see a silhouette already present on the swing, "Rose?"

He'd only known her for a couple weeks, but they had managed to build a solid and trusting friendship. Rose looked up from her tea and smiled at her obviously exhausted friend, genuinely glad to see him, "Hey, Rory. What are you doing up?"

"Dunno. Just worried, I guess." It wasn't a complete lie; he _was_ worried about River.

Rose nodded sympathetically, "It'll be okay."

"I know."

Suddenly exhausted, he walked over and took a seat next to Rose on the swing. She readjusted so she had her head in his lap and they watched the sun rise over the ocean as they sipped their drinks in silence.

The Doctor stirred and whispered _'River!'_ in his sleep before waking with a start. There was sweat across his forehead and a crick in his neck from rolling off the pillow at some point in the night. There was a Rory-sized gap next to him and on the other side lay a sleeping Amy, looking young and innocent cocooned in the blankets with her hair in disarray. The Doctor laughed softly before realizing his arm was draped over her and he pulled it back quickly while glancing around the room for Rory. Not seeing him, the Doctor lay back down, reclaiming his pillow, and watched Amy sleep. He had missed her so much. Realizing she wouldn't wake up any time soon, he rolled out from his side of the blanket and tucked it around Amy, beginning to wonder where it had even come from.

It was already 9:00 when he traipsed down the stairs, tightening his bow tie into place and promptly tripping over his own feet. Looking up from the floor, he was met with the heavily amused faces of Rose and Rory who were both trying very unsuccessfully to stifle giggles.

"Doctor?" This time the voice came from behind and he rolled over to see an obviously tired Amy not even trying to fight a smile as she took in her clumsy friend. The Doctor moaned and sunk his head back to the floor, "Why does this always happen in front of people?" he mumbled as Amy gingerly stepped over him and kissed her husband good morning.

"Don't tell me you broke him," John's fascinated voice came from across the room. The Doctor jumped to his feet before more people saw him and came face to face with Jack, nearly smacking their heads together. Jack's eyes sparkled with laughter, "Good morning, Sleeping Beauty. You three sleep all right?"

Amy's and Rory's faces turned pink, but the Doctor's held confusion until his mind could process, "Yeah, thanks for the blanket, Jack."

"No problem," Jack winked back at him, "Let's get to work."

When the Doctor had gathered everything on the weeping angels from the TARDIS database, the group sat around the table and got to reading. After only a few minutes, however, the Doctor realized they were dealing with something new.

"But Doctor, we saw them! They were definitely angels."

"It might not be that simple, Amy. They might be being controlled."

"By what? Has that ever happened before? Is it even possible?"

"I don't know! This is new for me, too!"

Amy sighed and sunk back into her chair, putting her head in her hands as she tried to stop the tears from coming. She didn't want to believe this could be something new. Weeping angels were bad enough, but her daughter with something more powerful? She knew how to deal with angles, not this.

Rory glared at the Doctor, "We know this is new for you too, but this is our daughter and we need answers."

Now it was the Doctor's turn to sigh. He hadn't meant to hurt Amy's feelings, but he was just as worried about his wife. The stakes were so much higher and he didn't even know what they were after. He looked down in shame and his eyes caught something on one of the papers, "_Oh!_"

All eyes were on him. He didn't even realize he had reacted out loud until Jack cleared his throat and gave him a look as if to say '_go on…'_ His eyes shifted back and forth as his mind finished putting the pieces together.

"I know what's going on."

"Do you want to share with the rest of the class?"

The Doctor's head snapped up when he realized all eyes were on him. His eyes flicked across the room rapidly as he finished fitting the pieces together in his mind, deciding it would be better to do so out loud, "The Weeping Angels started with the Time Lords. The timestreams… these are the Angels at the beginning… before they went rogue. Before something happened. But what? What made them break apart? What made them weak? OH! I did – we did. That's what's happening now," he was up and pacing, "The angels in New York, they sent Amy and Rory to this universe to bring us here. To stop us. We stopped them before and made them weak – they're taking us back to give themselves another chance. We need to get River."

He ran out of the room and up the stairs, leaving his friends staring at each other in confusion. Amy finally jumped up and followed him leaving the silent room behind. When she reached the guest room, the Doctor was standing, looking out the window, holding the faded picture of Amy and River in one hand and the sonic in his other, "Don't worry Pond, I'm going to go get your daughter."


	11. Chapter 11: Finding River Song

**** A/N: This one's short, sorry guys. Kinda angsty. Thanks for all the great reviews! I love you all and I'll have the next chapter posted really soon. Please keep the reviews coming – they mean a lot! ****

The Doctor had already made it all the way down the stairs before Amy could recover enough to follow him. She ran down the steps on shaking legs, desperate to catch him before he could leave the house. "Doctor, wait!"

He had already made it to the back door and was reaching for the handle when Amy's pained voice stopped him in his tracks. His grip on the picture tightened as he turned to face his friend. Rory had also risen to his feet and the couple was looking at him with determination as the rest of the group looked on. Amy's voice broke the tense silence, "We're coming with you."

The Doctor made a move to protest, but Rory spoke first, "Don't. Don't even try and tell us to stay because you know it isn't going to work. She's our kid and we're coming and that's final."

"No, Rory!" the Doctor was raising his voice now, "This is too complicated and I won't have you involved! Let _me_ handle this!"

"You know we're gonna go one way or another. Better to let us go with you then sneak over, don't you think?"

It was clearly a challenge and the Doctor didn't know how to respond. He was almost shaking with frustration when he regained his composure enough to speak again, "Damn it! Fine. But you listen to me. I'm not going to lose you two because you feel the need to go and do something stupid."

Amy reached over to clutch her husband's hand, hoping the Doctor would realize they would be helpful. The rest of the group watched the exchange with concern written all over their faces, but no one dared speak up. The Doctor was only going to let Amy and Rory go because they were River's parents and they'd be safer going with him than sneaking out on their own. The rest of them had no legitimate reason to go, as they would only get in the way.

The Doctor clutched the faded picture tighter as he stormed out of the house and straight to the TARDIS he had brought to park near Rose's house. He turned around reluctantly as he reached the door, waiting for the Ponds to catch up. They looked resolute, and not at all hesitant about the dangerous mission they were about to embark on. Every fiber of his being was telling him this was a bad idea, but if they stayed with him he had a better chance of keeping them safe.

When the three were gathered around the console, Amy and Rory started asking questions. Rory didn't hesitate to confront him, "Where is she, Doctor?"

"I'm working on it."

"You mean you don't know?"

"Amelia, give me a minute."

He fiddled anxiously with some knobs on all sides of the console, keeping his eyes on the screen and dodging the Ponds who were trying unsuccessfully to follow his sporadic motions. Finally, he looked at them; "I implanted a tracker in River's vortex manipulator a while back. She got it right before the Pandorica, so she already knew who I was. From her point of view, we were already married. I put the tracker in so that if I needed her, I could get to her at a point in her timestream when she would be willing to help."

"Because she would know who you were?" Rory clarified.

"Exactly."

"But you can find her, right?" Amy questioned.

"Hopefully. River's life is complicated. She's had the manipulator for a while, and she will have it for a while too. I have to find the moment in the vortex manipulator's timestream that corresponds to where we are now. That is, if she's even in sync with us and if it's with River. I suppose… they could have gone back and taken her before she got it… I really don't know."

"Just try ok?"

"Of course."

He poked around at some more controls and input the data for their current location and time before something started beeping. "Ponds! I think I got her!"

"How can you be sure?" Amy and Rory sprinted over.

"I know where the vortex manipulator is. It's in this universe, and it's in this exact time, in sync with us. I'd say it's a good bet that's River."

"Doesn't it seem a little too easy?"

"Yeah, it's a trap. But it's River. Your daughter and my wife. I don't think we have any choice but to go.

Amy and Rory teared up, but nodded in agreement. They both placed hands on him in comfort and attempted comforting smiles, "Let's go."

He adjusted the controls to lock onto the location, and with the pull of a lever the TARDIS jerked and they were off. The journey was short and silent – nobody dared speak and they were far too nervous. When they heard the familiar materialization noise around them, everyone's stomachs clenched and Amy had to sit down to stop herself from throwing up or passing out. When she had recovered, only letting a few tears fall, she let Rory support her and the Doctor led them out the doors. They were greeted by the too bright sunlight of early afternoon and not a building in sight. Only a large, ominous hill with silver doors built into the base. Definitely a trap. There was a noise from the forest behind them that Amy recognized all too well from the Byzantium and the three barely glanced at each other before the Doctor hid the TARDIS and they sprinted toward the hill.


	12. Chapter 12: Great Escape

**** A/N: Here's a longer chapter for you guys. Lot of action in this – enjoy! Reviews are always appreciated **** ****

The Doctor, Amy, and Rory burst through the heavy metal doors, which gave way with a slow creak that sent chills up the Doctor's spine. He saw terror wash over Amy's face and gave a slight optimistic smile when Rory grasped her hand again, though he was probably more scared than his wife. River was across the room. The Doctor found her right away. He could barely see her, save the outline of her hair. Amy gasped loudly when she noticed and Rory turned her away and pulled her against his chest, nodding at the Doctor in encouragement.

It was dead silent throughout the pure cement room. When the Doctor inched closer, he too gasped. River was cuffed to the wall, slouched close to the ground with her arms raised above her. Five angels, guards, surrounded her. She was bleeding, but he couldn't find the source. "River!" he whispered loudly, his hearts beating double-time, desperate for her to be okay. "River! River? Please, are you okay?"

"Doctor…"

It was a mumble, but it was enough. River knew he was there, she knew he had come for her, and that would give her strength. "Doctor! I think -"

"Not now, Rory!"

There was a sudden noise, like stone against stone, and the Doctor spun around. Six angels surrounded Amy and Rory. They stood back to back, clutching each other's hands at their sides. "Doctor this really might be important!"

"Yes, Rory. I think I see that now," his voice was steady and unwavering, but Rory detected a note of fear, "Do. Not. Blink. I will not lose you two again, do you understand me?"

"We aren't blinking!" Amy called, terrified, and she had every right to be. These creatures had stolen her life before, and they could easily do it again. "Doctor, I got her," Rory said. The Doctor saw him squeeze her hands in his, "I've got a handle on this. Please, just go get our daughter."

"Yes of course, okay."

The Doctor spun back around, shocked the angels hadn't moved until he locked eyes on River, whose gaze was locked on her guards, "Welcome back, Melody Pond!"

"Hello, sweetie."

They smiled at each other, though River was obviously weak. "I'm here to help you River, but I need you to be strong now."

River slowly strained to push herself to her feet, "Anything for you, dear."

He flipped his hair back and whipped out the sonic. "Now then, River Song, let's get you out of those cuffs. Seriously, always with the handcuffs."

He pointed to sonic at River's arms and the cuffs popped open. Somehow, River avoided collapsing to the ground, "If you joke about the cuffs, I get to joke about the screwdriver."

River was definitely in there; she couldn't help but sass the Doctor on his handy tool. He suddenly looked like a kid with his favorite toy being taken away, and forgot the direness of the situation, "River, I swear if you tell me to go build a cabinet one more time -"

"Doctor, just get her out!" Rory yelled from behind him, "Do you know how hard it is to not blink for this long?"

"Of course," he met River's eyes again and she stared him down.

"You got them back," she took a deep breath and gasped in pain, "You got them back and you brought them with you?!"

"River, I do not have time for this now, can we please focus on getting you out for the moment? I need you to be very careful and very steady."

The Doctor heard a high-pitched yelp behind him and rolled his eyes to the ceiling, "RORY! Can you please, maybe, NOT blink?"

"Sorry. Uh, they're pretty close now."

The sound of a fist against flesh and another yelp from Rory indicated that Amy was just as angry with him. The Doctor glanced back at River as if to say '_How in the hell are these your parents?' _ and she shrugged back, clearly getting the message. "Doctor, I've got this, get Amy and Rory."

"River, don't -"

"Listen to me. Get them first. I've been fine so far, I can last five more minutes."

She saw him get frustrated and shake his sonic as he threw his hands in the air, and she panicked. The last time she saw that frantic motion was right after he realized he was going to lose the Ponds. She didn't need to worry though, because he composed himself fairly quickly and reluctantly turned around.

Amy and Rory had backed against the far wall. Rory was trying to stay in front of her, but Amy was having none of it. She didn't need him to protect her when she was perfectly capable of helping. They were taking turns with their eyes open, doing everything they could to hold the angels back. It actually would have been somewhat humorous if they weren't in life-threatening danger. "Rory I'm going to get you first because you don't have as much to avoid," he faced Amy, "Keep your eyes on them, I need Rory to focus on me."

Amy nodded and the Doctor turned back to Rory, "Look at me."

Rory met his gaze. "You can do this. Rory the Roman, I know you can do this. Come on."

Rory took two miniscule steps toward the Doctor, never dropping his concerned gaze. He reached the angels and stepped past the first one, his breath hitching in absolute fear. He looked back up at the Doctor, who nodded confidently. Rory took another step around the second angel and was just one final step from freedom. He hesitantly reached his foot forward, and cringed when it came into direct contact with a rock sticking out of the concrete floor. Rory wavered and tried to balance himself, but he was falling. He closed his eyes so hard he saw fireworks and waited to wake up a few centuries back, tears already brimming in his eyes. When he slowly cracked one eye open, however, he was met with the Doctor's cocky grin and a firm grip on his forearm, holding him just inches from an angel and certain kind-of-death. With a single tug, Rory found himself falling against the Doctor, but away from the angel.

Rory pulled himself off of his friend and together they turned around and gently guided a visibly shaking Amy through the crowd of angels. She made it through surprisingly fast and fell against the two men, who immediately let out breaths they didn't even know they were holding, both hugging her tight. Amy heard the labored breathing of her daughter reverberating across the cement walls and recovered quickly, all energy refocused. Knowing he would never get Amy to stay watching the angels, the Doctor ordered Rory to keep his eyes on them and led Amy over to River. The dim light from the window bounced off River's face and Amy gasped; her daughter looked so vulnerable. "River?"

She looked up and met the Doctor's eyes, looking stronger. Her gaze shifted to her mother and she hurried to give a reassuring smile, but tears filled both women's eyes. Thankfully, only three angels were guarding River now, and it would be much easier to get her out. River was still rubbing her wrists, sore from the cuffs, but evidently much better. She was standing against the wall, not slouched, and her hair had regained its confident bounce. Her eyes shifted back to greet the Doctor's questioning look. She was stronger, but still not herself, "Hello, again sweetie. Thanks for saving my parents."

"Anytime, dear. Do you need help?"

"No, I got it."

The Doctor pulled Amy back and smiled at his wife, shooting her a wink. River returned it with a small smirk and quickly maneuvered her way between two of the angels, falling into her husband just as her parents had. "Okay, River, we need to get out of here fast!"

River didn't question him. The Doctor brushed his hand against hers and intertwined their fingers, trying to give her strength. She glimpsed his face out of the corner of her eye and saw a glint of his fierce desire to keep her safe. She tightened her fingers around his hand and gave it three short squeezes to let him know she understood. She still wasn't sure where he was in his timestream, but he was far enough to know who she was and how he felt about her, and that was all that mattered.

The Doctor blocked River protectively as they made their way across the room dodging the angels. She thought she heard the Doctor mumble something about protecting his wife, and if she heard right then he was much further in his timestream than she thought. She didn't get a chance to ask before they were over by Rory who, despite his less than stellar physical conditions at the moment, jumped up and threw his arms around River. Amy joined them and River was knocked into the Doctor. She rested her head against his chest while her parents fretted and made sure she was okay. When they were confident the Doctor hadn't broken their daughter, they broke up the family reunion and focused on the furious angels that had slowly moved in on them. "Something's weakening them, they're too slow."

"They look pretty fast to me, Doctor."

"No, Rory, they should've had us by now if they were as powerful as we believed them to be, but look: they're weak. And they almost look… frightened."

"What are you saying, sweetie?" River asked, confused.

"Something is controlling them," he explained, "It's mad we got you out and it's punishing them."

"But what -"

River what cut off by the loudest and highest pitch noise any of them had ever heard. The single window shattered instantaneously and glass rained down from above them. All four immediately collapsed to the floor and covered their ears, gasping in pain and struggling to keep their eyes open as the watched the angels move closer with each involuntary blink. When the room stopped shaking, they were able to pull themselves into a tight huddle, bracing themselves from the loud scratching on the back wall. Jack burst in out of nowhere, seemingly immune to the noise, and began shooting. The noise died down a moment later and Jack dropped his gun. The Doctor struggled to pull himself to his feet, looking at the unusual ammo scattered around the basement, "Salt, Jack? What the hell is salt going to do?"

Jack only shrugged, "Thought there was a chance it could help. Learned it from a guy named Dean… too bad he had a boyfriend."

"Not now, Jack…" the Doctor picked his trembling companions off the floor.

"Well it worked, saved your ass."

"No. No, I don't think so. It was done."

"With what?"

"Turn around."

Jack looked to the back wall, "What does it mean?"

Huge, blood red letters were scratched into the cement wall: I WANT QUERY.

"It wants us to find him, the monster wants to talk to us."

Now it was Amy's turn to be confused, "How could you know that?"

The Doctor was already halfway out the door, sprinting, "It told us where to find it!"

***Kudos to anyone who picked up on the Supernatural/Destiel reference toward the end ***


	13. Chapter 13: Angst and Pain

Jack glanced at River and the Ponds, obviously annoyed, "You know, it wouldn't hurt him to tell us what's going on every once in a while."

The group ran after the Doctor, sprinting toward the door. "Why aren't they attacking us?"

"They have orders!" the Doctor yelled back from several yards ahead, "They can't hurt us!"

"You better be right about this, Doc!" Jack yelled ahead, "I'm gonna be pissed if I take a step and run into the twentieth century! Been there, done that!"

The group ran down the corridor and caught up with the Doctor when they pushed through a wooden door and were immediately blinded by sunlight. They were only a mile from the beach, and the Doctor sprinted the entire way to the house while the others struggled to keep up and keep River going.

John, Jackie, and Rose were on standby as the ragged group walked into their house. They looked up from their papers, startled, and took in the sight of the five out of breath friends with small drips of blood coming from their ears. "What happened?!" Rose ran over and helped the Doctor get River onto a cushion. The time in the small prison had gotten to her, and the running hadn't helped. She needed to rest. River was obviously against it, but she found herself unable to protest as the Doctor covered her with his jacket and kissed her nose gently. An orange glow passed between them as he sent regeneration energy into her, healing her injuries and allowing her to rest.

"Doctor, what do you mean they want us to find them?"

"You have to look, Rory. Really look," the Doctor kept his voice steady and walked to the other side of the room, "He told us where to find them."

"No… he didn't."

The Doctor sighed audibly and snatched a piece of paper from Jack's unsuspecting grasp, shooting him a familiar look before he could complain. He grabbed a marker and everybody's eyes followed him as he pressed the paper against the wall and began to write. When he turned around, three bold words stuck out on the middle of the page: I WANT QUERY.

"Yeah that's what was on the wall."

"Oh Rory, you're looking, but you aren't seeing!"

The Doctor turned back around and when he faced them with the paper again, the Pond's faces turned paler than the Doctor had ever seen them as they took in the two words scrawled directly below the first message: WINTER QUAY.

"It was an anagram…" the Doctor sighed, his own uncertainty growing.

Jack had no idea what was going on, bur from a short scan of the three faces it wasn't good, "Winter Quay?"

At the mere mention of the name, River recovered and sat straight up, her pleading eyes searched the Doctor's pained face, "We can't go back there."

"River, I don't think we have a choice," his voice was quiet and terrifying.

"This was over!"

"Somebody doesn't think so. They took you," The Doctor's tone was steady, his voice dripping with vengeance as he looked at his wife with desperation, "They took you from me, River. You and your parents. Obviously, this isn't over for someone."

She knew he was right. She knew they didn't have a choice, but she so badly wanted him to believe they did. It was the one place in the universe she was desperate to keep him away from and now he was accepting an open invitation. She only had one more argument, "Are you going to let them take you from me?"

"Damn it, River! We are not having this again!" he was angry now, "I only want to protect you, River. Why can't you see that I care for you and I just want to keep you safe?"

"Because, sweetie, this isn't about you sacrificing yourself to keep me safe. This is about ending this for good," she stood up and met his eyes, "How can you be so old and so young at the same time?"

He reminded her of a frightened child, but she knew that when it came down to it, he would lay down his life in one beat of his hearts if it meant saving her. She reached up and kissed him gently, and he kissed her back, pulling away to look into her begging eyes. "Okay…we'll think about this before we go in."

Rose watched their exchange; even she never had that kind of power over him. She reached over and grabbed John's hand. She didn't know exactly what was happening, but it pained the Doctor and his family, and there was a chance John was feeling it too. Sure enough, when she looked over at him, his eyes were brimming with tears as he looked at River. He was seeing himself, granted it was a different version, looking so lovingly at the woman he'd watched sacrifice herself for him. And she was refusing to let him do the same for her because now they were in sync. It wasn't like the library when he had no idea who she was. Now they knew each other, loved each other, and she couldn't let that go. But it was more than all that: he was seeing himself moving on after Rose. Rose saw John's pain now, and she held his hand tight since the Doctor already had his own support. She let go a minute later, and only a few tears managed to make a quick escape when he wrapped his arm around her tight.

**** A/N: Sorry guys, another short one. I'll update soon – this is all I have typed for now. Need to figure out what happens next! Please leave reviews or check out my SPN fic! If you want to talk to me more, send me a message on tumblr, my URL is on my account page **** ****


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